Joint for furniture.



P. G. ABRAMS.

JOINT FOR FURNITURE.

APPLICATION FILED APR.6,1910.

978,539. Patented Dec. 13,1910.

WITNESSES Cir UNHED s'rarias PATENT @FFIGE.

PERCY G. ABRAMS, 0F PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

JOINT FOR FURNITURE.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, PERCY G. Animals, a citizen of the United States, residing in the city and county of Philadelphia, State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Joint for Furniture, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to a jointing device for furniture and the like, and more particularly to a fastening means for uniting the rungs of a chair or the like article to the leg or other parts thereof, whereby the several members are secured together without employing glue or other cementing material.

In devices as heretofore constructed for this or like purposes it has been proposed to unite the several parts together by screw threaded or wedge like structures consisting of many parts and more or less complicatec and expensive to assemble and which in operation are not eifective for the purpose intended. It has also been proposed in former structures to utilize fastening devices stamped out of metal, but in so far as I am aware these have been of one piece constructions and have no cooperating parts to insure the proper operation of the device when in position upon a chair rung or the like and the stability of the completed article is uncertain.

In my present invention I have devised a fastening device preferably formed from sheet metal and consisting preferably of cooperating parts which produce a certain expanding action during the operation of assembling the parts, whereby the device coacts with the adjacent material and secures the parts together.

For the purpose of illustrating my invention, I have shown in the accompanying drawings one form thereof which is at present preferred by me, since the same has been found in practice to give satisfactory and reliable results, although it is to be understood that the various instrumentalities of which my invention consists can be variously arranged and organized and that my invention is not limited to the precise arrangement and organization of these instrumentalities as herein shown and described.

Referring to the drawings: Figure 1 represents a perspective of a blank forming one part of my novel fastening device. Fig. 2

represents a perspective of a blank forming the other portion of the same.

Fig. 8 rep Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed April 6, 1910.

Patented Dec. 13, 1910.

Serial No. 553,749.

terminates in plates t which are here shown as having a rounded portion 5 joining the arms 2. At suitable intervals these plates 4 are provided with slots 6 forming teeth 7 on each side for the purpose of engaging and biting into the wood or like material with which the blank is to be used. The arms 3 terminate, as here shown, in heads 8, preferably pointed in order to serve as teeth, which are adapted to be pressed into the material and act as looking devices to hold the parts together.

9 represents a blank preferably substantially U-shaped, having the prongs 10 thereon for a purpose to be presently described.

In assembling the device the member 9 is bent into a substantially U-shaped form and the prongs 10 preferably turned outward in order to cooperate with the heads 8 of the member 1. The blank 1 is now suitably bent into the required shape which consists in turning the heads 8 back upon the member 9 so that they assume a converging position with respect to each other, as seen in Fig. 3. The arms 2 are then each given a bend in the same direction to bring the plates 4: into a substantially parallel spaced-apart position, so that a rung or like article may readily be inserted between them. It will be noted when the device has thus been assembled that the two members 1 and 9 are loosely connected together and have a slid ing relation one to the other, so that any movement of the member 9 tending to telescope the two members will result in the heads 8 contacting with the sides of the member 9, thereby preventing them from bending backward away from the material, and insuring that the heads 8 project so as to bite into the material.

In the operation of the device the rung 11 of a chair or the like is inserted between the two plates 1, which latter are then hammered or squeezed into close contact with the rung in order to affix the member 1 firmly in position by driving the re th into the material. The rung l with the dc vice attached thereto is then driven into a suitable socket 12 of a member 1 3, and as soon the member 5) engages the bottom of the socket it telescopes with its cotiperating member 1, and thus forms a reinforcing backingwhich prevents the heads 8 from bending improperly and insures their being forced into the sides of the socket, the telescoping; action causing the beveled heads to spread apart as in llig. tlhis telescoping action arises the prongs 10 of the member 9 to be diverged and driven into the side walls of the socket 12 so tl at any movement tending to pull the rung outwardly will result in en'ibedding the prongs l0 farther into the walls of the socket, thus forming an independent locking engagement, effectually preventing the withdra val of the rung and its attached member 1.

In the modification shown in l 3 the member 1 has the side plates provided with an opening H which perforn'is the same function as to locking; the member on the rung as the teeta 7 do in the heretofore described form. that is to say, the material of the rung is forced up into the openings Li and securely maintains the device in position. lit will of :ourse be understood that the member 3') cooperates with this modification in the same manner as described and is an equally efficient means of securing the two parts of the furniture together.

It will now be apparent that l have devised a simple and elfoctive n'icans for uniting two members together, such as a chair rung and leg, and in which the holding strength depends for etlicieut operation in the sliding li'iOVOlHt-Ill' between the two members 1 and 9 and in the interlocking and diverging of the parts or heads in opposite directions during the movement of the rung; when being forced into position. it will be noted that this sliding action tends to move the said prongs and heads relative to each othe and cause the same to be indented into the sides of the socket thereby holding the parts lirinly locked together.

It will now be apparent that i have devised a novel and useful construction of a joint for furniture, which embodies the fez tures of advantage enume 'ated as desire ble in the statement of the invention and the above description, and while l have, in the present instance, saown and described a preferred embodiment thereof which has been found in practice to give satisfactory and reliable results, .it is to be understood that the same is susceptible of modification in various particulars without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention or sacrificing any of its advantages.

Having thus described my invention, what orseso l claim as new and desire t( secure by Letters Patent, is

l. in a device of the character stated, a strip of materialbent into a substantially U- sliapc, means to secure said strip to a rung, heads-on said strip, and a locking member siidingly coin ected to the said strip and adapted to diverge said heads.

2. in a device of the character stated, a strip of material bent into a substantially llshape, means to secure said strip ti a rung, ltf-ttClS on said strip, a locking member slidngly connected to said strip and adapted to livergg'e said heads, and prongs on said lockng member.

3. in a. device of the character stated, a strip of material, a plate formed on iach end of said strip, means on each plate to secure said strip to rung, heads on said strip, and a locking; member slidingzly connected to said strip and adapted to diverge said heads.

st. in a device of the cha 'acter stated, a strip of material, a plate formed. on each end of said strip, means on each plate to cure said strip to a rung, heads on said strip, a lockingmember slidingly connected to said strip and adapted to diverge said heads, and prongs on said locking member.

in a device of the eha 'acter stated, the con'ibination of a blank compr'singr plates spaced apart in substantially pa allel relation, heads oppositely disposed with respect to said plates, and a locking member movably secured to said blank and adapted to enact with said heads to force the same 2 part.

6. in a device of the character stated, the ci'imbination of a blank comprising plates spaced apart in sul stantially parallel relation, heads oppositely disposed with respect: to said plates, and a lockingmember movably secured to said blank and having an outwardly turned prong; on each side thereof said member being; adapted to coact with said heads to force the same apart.

7. in a device of the character stated, the combination of a blank comprising plates spaced apart in substantially parallel relation, heads oppositely disposed with respect to said plates, and a locking member movably secured to said blank and having a pinality of outwz rdly turned prongs on each side thereof said member being adapted to coact with said heads to force the same apart.

8. in a device of the character stated, the combination of a blank comprising plates spaced apart in substantially parallel relation, heads oppositely disposed with respect to said plates and a locking; member movably secured to said blank and haying con verging sides adapted to co-aet with said heads to force the same apart.

PERCY G. ABltAldS.

lVitnesses ltonmrr M. Benn, G. D. MCVAY. 

